New CFPB rule on access to credit for mortgages

The CFPB announced today that it

finalized a rule to improve information reported about the residential mortgage market. The rule will shed more light on consumers’ access to mortgage credit by updating the reporting requirements of the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) regulation. The Bureau is working with other federal agencies to streamline the reporting process for financial institutions.

What are the implications? The rule governs what data residential mortgage lenders must provide the government about homebuyers. As the Bureau explains, greater reporting gives consumers and regulators better access to they information they need to understand the operation of the market and determine whether lenders are complying with laws governing fair lending.

The full CFPB press release is here, and the new rule is here.